This relates generally to electronic devices and, more particularly, to electronic devices with liquid intrusion sensing capabilities.
Electronic devices such as computers and cellular telephones are often accidentally exposed to moisture. For example, a portable device may become wet when exposed to rain or when accidentally dropped in water.
It can be difficult to troubleshoot damaged electronic devices without knowledge of whether or not a device has been exposed to liquid. If care is not taken, wasteful repair attempts may be made on a permanently damaged device or a device that has not been exposed to damaging liquids may be needlessly scrapped without identifying a reparable fault.
Liquid contact indicators are available that are formed from dye-impregnated paper. When exposed to moisture, the dye will diffuse into the paper and give rise to a visible mark such as a red spot. This type of dye-based liquid contact indictor may be installed within an electronic device in a location that is visible from the exterior of a device, thereby allowing a technician to easily inspect the status of the indicator to determine whether or not the electronic device has been exposed to liquid.
Dye-based liquid contact indicators provide only limited information about liquid contact events and exhibit irreversible state changes. This can make it difficult or impossible to troubleshoot failures. It is also not possible for a device to take actions in real time in response to a state change in a dye-based liquid contact indictor.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide electronic devices with improved liquid contact detection capabilities.